buroBELÉN

Brecht Duijf and Lenneke Langenhuijsen aka buroBELÉN are very happy as they have just invented the name “materializers” to describe their profession. After all, it’s not exactly easy to describe what they two do. They’re not “just” textile designers, although many of their projects hinge on fabrics, for example when the two Design Academy Eindhoven graduates stain velvet with indigo or make textiles from wood in keeping with a crafts tradition that originated on the South Pacific island of Tonga. That’s from where the materializers import the fabrics made from the outer bark of mulberry trees; they have it refined in St. Gallen in Switzerland. Most recently, buroBELÉN caused a real stir with their unusual “Atmospheric Car” study for Volvo – at the last Dutch Design Week. It’s an automobile that they want to produce using an almost dematerialized material called “Airloy”.

Whowhatwherewhenhow?

01

Where would you like to live?

Here.

02

Your favorite character in the history of design?

Madame Grès, Eileen Gray.

03

Which qualities do you admire in a designer?

Ethic and aesthetic.

04

What do you enjoy doing most?

Diving into materials.

05

Your main personality trait?

Tactility and colour-use.

06

Your biggest mistake?

Letting ourself photograph like two dolls for a magazine.

07

Your idea of happiness?

When things come together.

08

What do you find really annoying?

The hours of management we have to make for our studio.

09

Your favorite material?

Any, totally depends on what you do with it...

10

Your favorite flower?

That’s a difficult one… we can’t choose just one. So here our favourite three: Cherryblossom because it is a party given by nature and afterwards it creates a pink carpet.Yasmin because you smell it before you see it. Peony because of the colour range it goes through, pink-peach, orange, sulfur-yellow, cream, white…

11

What kind of music do you listen to when you work?

None, working is a state of mind. When doing something production-wize without thinking the it is Henryk Górecki, Thom York, Tindersticks, Stromae as like as primitive music from people living in the rainforest …

12

Which design achievement do you most detest?

Things that make our life easier but not better.

13

Which talent would you like to have?

Patience.

14

Can you describe your present state of mind?

At the moment we are very happy with our new profession name “materializers”.

Bio

Brecht Duijf and Lenneke Langenhuijsen studied at the Design Academy Eindhoven in the Netherlands, both majoring in “Man and Well-Being”, the only difference being that Duijf graduated in 2006, which was when Langenhuijsen first started studying. Last year, having each worked freelance the two teamed up to form buroBELÉN – and in 2014 the two women for the first time presented jointly at Palazzo Clerici in Milan. Back in 2011 Z33 Director Jan Boelen came across their work – and incorporated it into his “New Heros by Z33” show in Milan, as did Lidewij Edelkoort, who on several occasions included buroBELÉN's work in her “Talking Textiles” roadshow.